Mark Budaska
| Mark Budaska | |
|---|---|
 Budaska in 2018 | |
| Designated hitter/Coach | |
| Born: December 27, 1952 Sharon, Pennsylvania, U.S. | |
Batted: Switch Threw: Left | |
| MLB debut | |
| June 6, 1978, for the Oakland Athletics | |
| Last MLB appearance | |
| August 18, 1981, for the Oakland Athletics | |
| MLB statistics | |
| Batting average | .167 |
| Hits | 6 |
| Home Runs | 0 |
| NPB statistics | |
| Batting average | .208 |
| Hits | 3 |
| Home Runs | 17 |
| Teams | |
|
As Coach | |
Mark David Budaska (born December 27, 1952) is an American former Major League Baseball outfielder and former hitting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals.
Early and personal life
[edit]Budaska was born on December 27, 1952, in Sharon, Pennsylvania. He is an alumnus of Granada Hills (CA) High School. He was undrafted and was signed by the Oakland Athletics as an amateur free agent in 1973.
Career
[edit]Playing career
[edit]Budaska played five seasons at the Triple-A level, but just 13 games in the Major Leagues. He played his final MLB game on August 18, 1981.
Coaching career
[edit]Budaska spent a decade (2008-2017) as the hitting coach for the Memphis Redbirds, the Triple-A affiliate of the Cardinals. Prior to joining the Memphis coaching staff in 2008, Budaska spent six years in the Boston Red Sox organization, including four seasons (2004–2007) with Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox in the International League. In 2002–2003, he was the hitting coach of the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs. In 2001, he helped the Anaheim Angels' Double-A affiliate Arkansas Travelers win the Texas League Championship, as the team ranked fourth in the league with a .266 team batting average. He also served as hitting coach and first base coach for a major league team in Taiwan from 1998 to 2000, and he coached in Venezuela during several offseasons.[1] He served as the assistant hitting coach with the St. Louis Cardinals for several weeks in the first half of the 2017 season while Bill Mueller was on personal leave. He then returned to their Triple-A Memphis Redbirds as hitting coach.[2]
Budaska replaced John Mabry as hitting coach for the St. Louis Cardinals on July 15, 2018.[3] The Cardinals hired Jeff Albert as their hitting coach after the 2018 season, and retained Budaska as assistant hitting coach. The Cardinals fired Budaska in August 2019, and replaced him with Jobel Jiménez.[4]
References
[edit]- ^ "An Analysis of the Cardinals' Firing of Assistant Hitting Coach Mark Budaska". SBNation. August 3, 2019. Retrieved August 6, 2024.
- ^ Langosch, Jenifer (June 27, 2017). "Diaz working hard to fix hitting deficiencies". MLB.com. Retrieved July 7, 2017.
- ^ "On firing Matheny, Cardinals chairman DeWitt says 'it was time for a fresh voice'". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. July 15, 2018.
- ^ Hummel, Rick. "Shildt says decision to replace assistant hitting coach Budaska was his". STLtoday.com.
External links
[edit]- Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball Reference, or Fangraphs, or Baseball Reference (Minors) or Retrosheet
- Pura Pelota
- 1952 births
- Living people
- American expatriate baseball players in Canada
- American expatriate baseball players in Japan
- Baseball players from Mercer County, Pennsylvania
- Burlington Bees players
- Cardenales de Lara players
- American expatriate baseball players in Venezuela
- Chattanooga Lookouts players
- LAPC Brahma Bulls baseball players
- Lewiston Broncs players
- Major League Baseball outfielders
- Minor league baseball coaches
- Modesto A's players
- Oakland Athletics players
- Ogden A's players
- People from Sharon, Pennsylvania
- San Jose Missions players
- Tacoma Tigers players
- Tigres de Aragua players
- Vancouver Canadians players
- Yokohama Taiyō Whales players
- Baseball coaches from California
- Granada Hills Charter High School alumni